Oops.

Last night I was standing in the bathroom filling the bath for Joseph. I was also looking at my game of words with friends with Daniel. I got a bit distracted and filled the bath up really high. When I turned the taps off, he objected a bit. He quite liked the water running in and really enjoyed his deep deep bath.

Laundry.

I hate laundry. I think I have probably written that many times on my blog. It would have to be the job I hate the most. It is just never ending and huge with all my children.

I think it has been more of a pain for 18 months now because we have had my washing machine set up in an old bathroom.

We changed the old laundry into the children's bathroom and since then, we have had the washing machine up on an old door over our bath in our old bathroom.

It is the next job we are doing in our renovations and we finally have the money to do it.

So I am looking for ideas.

Here is a picture of the idea I have for our laundry.

Our laundry space is much smaller than this one but I like the set up of the washing machine, trough and cupboards. We could do it along the wall that the bath is in at the moment. I think I want some softer colours for the paint but love the wood colour for the cupboards. Steve was a plumber before he was a teacher so he knows how to do all the plumbing and put the hose from the washing machine to the trough.

I will show colours and progress as we do all the work.

Tasty Tuesday: Pumpkin soup.

Last Thursday, a few commenter's asked for my pumpkin soup recipe so I decided to post it.

My pumpkin soup is very similar to my broccoli soup recipe so you get a bonus recipe too. Two recipes, one post.

Pumpkin Soup:

Ingredients:

500 grms pumpkin diced.

500 grms potatoes diced.

1 litre vegetable stock.

300 mls sour cream.

chives.

salt and pepper to taste.

put pumpkin, potatoes and vegetable stock into a large saucepan.

Bring to the boil and simmer for 20-30 minutes.

When potato and pumpkin are soft, put in food processor with vegetable stock. Once soup is mixed, place back in saucepan and add sour cream, salt, pepper and chives. Heat through and serve.

I usually double this recipe for our family and it will have enough left over for me to have for lunch the next day.

Broccoli soup:

Ingredients.

500 grms broccoli.

125 grms spinach.

500 grms potato.

1 litre vegetable stock.

300 mls cream.

Place broccoli and potatoes into vegetable stock and bring to the boil. (I cut my potato up pretty small for this so that it cooks just as quickly as the broccoli does).

Simmer for 5-10 minutes so that the potatoes and broccoli are all cooked.

Add spinach and watch till it wilts.

place in food processor and mix. Put back in saucepan and add cream. Serve when heated through.

This recipe is usually doubled too.

I hope you all enjoy these wonderful winter soups.

Smart Martha Monday

I only had take the children to see Cars 2 on my to do list last week and since this was something I wanted to do, I did it.

This week we are back to school. Since Brigette was home today, we didn't do any home school either. I also took Joseph to see our Paediatrician. He has a weakness on his left side that he will need some physiotherapy for. We have noticed him walking with a limp and he certainly favours his right hand when most children his age are still very ambidextrous. I have also noticed that when he claps, he brings his right hand over to his left hand rather than moving them both.

The paediatrician said that it is most likely this will have disappeared by the time he is 5 so I hope he is right on this.

So on my list this week:

Make Joseph's appointment for some physio.

Read with the children every day.

Make our bed every day.

Make some butter with the children.

Hope you all have a good week.

Therese.

Weekend wrap up

We have had a busy but fun weekend here this weekend.

- Brigette had a job interview today for a job at Hungry Jacks. Yesterday I took her to Target to get a new outfit for it. This will be one of the last outfits I will buy her since she was offered a job at the interview. She starts work this Thursday. Brigette is our 4th child to start her working life at Hungry Jacks. Daniel, Sam and Madeline all started work here so we are keeping a family tradition going still. One of the things I love about having our older children all close together is they have become a little more independent of us close together too. I still cannot believe we have 4 children that have a little bit of financial independence.

- Last night we got to Mass a bit earlier so that I could go to reconciliation before mass. Reconciliation is a chance for a new beginning and to turn my life around. A good way to start the new term. I have a renewed vigour for all that I need to do this term.

- The temps here have been wonderful for the last week. Every day we have had lots of sun. Yesterday since the sun was shining, Steve and I walked Joseph into town for our food shopping. We had a small list so most of it fitted in the basket under Joseph for the walk home. It made a big difference though to the weight of the pusher and I am sure I used some muscles that I didn't know I had.

- Today we went back to Gladstone Square park. This time, Tom was with us. He didn't want to come on Wednesday. The children all had lots of fun again. I am sure we are going to be taking the children to this park quite often especially once the weather warms up.

I hope you have all had a great weekend.

Therese.

In the book “Can Man Live Without God?” Ravi Zacharis writes:

If I am merely the product of matter and at the mercy of material determinism,why should I subject myself to anyone else’s moral convictions? If, on the otherhand, I am fashioned by God for his purpose, then I need to know him and know that purpose for which I have been made, for out of that purpose is born my sense of right and wrong. There are two worlds represented by these options.

The atheist lives in tension. He says one thing and knows in his heart of hearts that another is true. The atheist ethics professor teaches ethical relativism, mocks Christianity with its moral absolutes, and explains to his class that right and wrong, as objective moral standards, do not exist. But then he absolutely demands that you not cheat on his test on ethical relativism. If you do cheat, he immediately forgets that he’s an atheist and begins speaking like a Christian, insisting that cheating is wrong and that you should know that.

We cannot teach people that they are nothing but material things that have evolved out of the slime and then try to also teach them that there is moral law they need to abide by. They are too smart to not see the implications of the atheism they’re taught. So they reason this world is a struggle for existence, and if cheating on a few tests will help me to get ahead and get the good job and earn the good money, then why not?

There is no foundation for morality apart from God. If naturalists really begin to live in a manner consistent with their worldview, their moral lives would implode.

Taken from “The Godless Delusion” by Patrick Madrid and Kenneth Hensley.

7 quick takes: The holiday edition.

Thanks so much to Jen at conversion diary for hosting 7 quick takes each week.

-1-

The holidays are just about over. We have Saturday and Sunday left and on Monday it will be back to school for us all. Well, except Brigette. Her school doesn't start till Tuesday.

-2-

I have had a very relaxing week this week which was needed. I still need to finish of my planning for term three but feel pretty prepared. I should finish it of tomorrow.

-3-

I read the book I'll walk alone by Mary Higgins Clark this week. Mary HC is one of my favourite writers. I really like her style of writing. If you want to see what the book is like, the link has the first two chapters for you to hook you in.

-4-

Joseph will be seeing our Paediatrician on Monday. He had xrays on his hips and legs a while ago and there was no abnormality. He is definitely walking with a limp though so we will just go and see the paediatrician and see what they think could be causing it.

-5-

Annie the musical is coming to Australia next year. I have already told Steve I want to go to Melbourne and see it.

-6-

Tom and Christopher have been playing a lot of diddy kong racing these holidays. I love the game too and have helped Christopher win a few races.

-7-

I have decided I am following too many blogs. I really have to cut back the amount of time I spend on the internet. In the holidays, I do have the time to keep up with them but once school is back, I just cannot.

I am going to keep the same blogs in my reader but will cut the list that I am following. I really wish I could follow them all but my priority needs to be my family and home.

Small Successes and Thankful Thursday.

Thanks so much to Sherri from Chocolate for your brain for hosting Small Successes each week.

I have a few this week.

First, we went on Tuesday to see Cars two. It was a great movie.

Second, Steve and I have been to mass everyday.

Third, we took Madeline and Brigette to YCS camp on Monday. We also kept up with all the house work while they were gone.

fourth, we walked to mass on Tuesday with our younger 4 children. Joseph went in the pusher and all the others said they wished they were small still and could have a ride in it.

As well as these successes, I am thankful this week for:

The school holidays and spending time together as a family.

Going to see Cars two with the children.

A big pot of pumpkin soup sitting on our stove top.

A freezer that will take the excess for another meal, another night.

Wordless Wednesday: Gladstone Square

Christopher and Joseph.

Amelia, Joseph and Christopher

Amelia.

This is the new playground the council has built at Gladstone square.

Pay It forward.

Holly from A Life Size Catholic Blog is the hostess for Pay it Forward.
It is a chance to highlight another blogger, blog post or blog.
I found out about it two weeks ago when Laura O shared my blog.
I decided right then, there were lots of blogs that I want to share with people in the blogsphere.
Today I am sharing a blog that is new.
Meet Sue from Not enough Butter.
Sue is another Australian Blogger with 7 children. Her youngest baby, Braith is just 1 year younger than Joseph.
Sue is going to start home schooling soon too.
One of her posts that I has been inspiring for me was her post this week on Organising Clothes storage.
She posts cute photos regularly and I am always uplifted whenever I go and visit her blog. I always know that I will find a post that will make me smile.
Go over and say hello to Sue. Tell her that I sent you.
Don't forget to pay a visit to Holly too from A life Size Catholic Blog.

Smart Martha Monday

I only had one thing to do last week and I didn't do it at all. My thing to do was make our bed as soon as I get out of it each morning.

I didn't even do it once. (blush blush blush)

I think the trip to Adelaide may have stopped this to a degree. But also I am on holidays and I really don't want to think about what I should do.

My aim for this week is going to be to take Tom, Amelia and Christopher to the cinema. I think we will go and see cars two.

Some atheists argue that we don’t need to believe in God in order to have morality. We can determine what is right and wrong by using reason alone.

Atheist Kai Nielsen argues that it doesn’t take God’s existence for us to figure out what is just and fair in a given situation. Do we really need God in order to know that we ought to keep our promises, or tell the truth, or pay our debts, or allow an elderly woman to take our seat on the bus? If we want to be treated with respect and dignity, isn’t it only reasonable that we should treat others with respect and dignity? It doesn’t take the existence of God for us to figure out how we ought to conduct ourselves morally.

Both Kai Nielsen and Immanuel Kant are right when they suggest that we can come to know what is right and what is wrong by the use of reason alone. After all, the moral law exists and is reasonable and God has written his moral law on our hearts and given us reason so that we might understand the world he has created. But if there is no God, no moral law, and if nothing exists but material substances as atheists like Nielsen suggest, why should a notion like ‘reason’ bond us to any particular type of conduct? If there is no moral truth to be discovered and if I have to simply choose the moral point of view because that type of life is what I find worthwhile for myself, then the decision is arbitrary, rationally speaking. The moral difference between Mother Teresa and Hitler is roughly the same as the difference between whether I want to be a trumpet player of a baseball player.

Because the naturalist worldview cannot support the real existence of right and wrong, any standard of morality the atheist comes up with is going to be arbitrary. It will simply be his idea of a good way to have some resemblance of morality in an immoral, impersonal, meaningless universe. Often it will also be inconsistent and even contradictory to the naturalist worldview. To see this, all one has to do is ask the question: How exactly does this ethical standard arise naturally from an infinite sea of ever changing material substances?

Taken from "The Godless Delusion" by Patrick Madrid and Kenneth Hensley.

Lesson learnt.

Most of the time, I am pretty picky about what I let my children see. If a new movie is out and our children want to see it, I generally look at Decent Films to read the review. Sometimes I have disagreed with the review but still, I think it is better to be cautious with movies that I haven't seen myself. Generally speaking, if there is any movie that doesn't get a big thumbs up from Decent Films, I will watch it before I let my children watch it.

Last night, Brigette, Amelia and I had a girls night. I let Brigette choose the movie and she chose Life as we know it.

If I had seen it before, I would have said, no that is not suitable for Amelia. As it was, if it was a movie that if Brigette really wanted to watch it, I would say okay but we will watch it together and look at it critically.

I think the thing that I disliked about the movie was the story line. The story line is about a couple that are married with a new baby. The couple dies and leave two friends as guardians of their baby. They do this in spite of the two friends disliking each other. They also do it without asking their friends if they are willing to do it.

I see several problems with this. Firstly, the job of choosing a guardian should never be taken lightly. Steve and I spent several days discussing it when Daniel was a baby and have since discussed if the person we have asked is still the right person for the job should Steve and I die. It is something we put a lot of thought and prayer into.

I also would never put someone down to take care of our children without their permission. How do I even know they are willing to take on such a huge responsibility without speaking to them about it?

There were several lines in the script that were just tacky and many of the interactions between the cast were just totally unrealistic. There were a lot of stereo types as well. I am going to have to talk with both Brigette and Amelia about the movie and many of the things that were implied and presented as truth.

After this experience, I have decided I am not going to watch a movie with the girls that I haven't seen myself before or that doesn't get a thumbs up from Decent Films.

Friday movie night.

This afternoon, Steve, Tom and Christopher have gone fishing. Daniel was going with a mate and invited them along.
Brigette, Amelia and I are having a girls night and watching Life as we know it and eating barnacle bills for tea.

Small Successes and Thankful Thursday.

Thanks so much to Sherry from Chocolate for your brain for hosting Small Success each week.

We have had a great week here with the start of the school holidays. Here are a few of the small successes I have had.

-1-

We went to Adelaide for a few days. We only saw family this time because we were only there for a couple of days. My mother is having a month in respite care at Southern Cross Homes in Klemzig. We spent a fair bit of time helping her pack up some things in her house. She will probably have to move soon into assisted living soon because she has so much trouble moving around.

-2-

Today we got back to Port Augusta by 1.00 so after unpacking the car and having some lunch, Steve and I walked to the bakery in town to get bread for the rest of the week. I think it was probably about 7 km round trip.

-3-

Changes have happened with the bedrooms at our house this afternoon too.

Up to today, the little boys room has been for Tom and Christopher. Now it is for Tom, Christopher and Joseph. I have moved the baby out of our room. He sleeps pretty well all night. I think being in the boys room will mean we will take longer to wake us if he wakes so maybe he will start sleeping right through till 7.00 when the other boys do. Well I can dream about this happening.

This week I am thankful for:

Our family holiday and the chance to catch up with family.

Joseph growing up.

Steve's sister having us stay while we were in Adelaide.

Going out for tea with Steve's sister.

Wordless Wednesday: Out with family.

We had a lovely night out for tea with Steve's sister and her family.

Tasty Tuesday: Self saucing Chocolate pudding.

Today I want to share with you all, a recipe that Vicky from Creating with Wisdom posted on her blog. I haven't tried this pudding yet, but will sometime this week.

Go here to get the recipe.

As I said to Vicky, Chocolate pudding is one of the good things about winter.

Smart Martha Monday

My list from last week is just about complete. I haven't quite finished the children's literacy curriculum for term three but I have a lot written down and 90% of the ideas complete.

This week, since it is holidays, I am going to make an effort to make our bed every morning when we get up. Steve is just about always up before me so this should be simple. I remember hearing that it takes 22 days to make something a habit so I might try making our bed first thing when we get up for the next three weeks and hopefully after that, I will just do it without even thinking about it.

weekend wrap up.

Saturday was our usual busy day. We had mass and adoration followed by netball and food shopping.

We took the children to video esy since it is holidays.

Saturday night we went to mass.

This morning we got up and did all the house work. We then drove to Whyalla for a family day. We meet Daniel and Michael at bowling and then went to Hungry Jacks for lunch. After lunch we went back to Daniel's place. The video above was shot there. It was a fun day and a great way to start of our holidays.

Atheists will argue that there does not need to be a God given moral law, but that we can choose to do anything so long as we are not hurting someone.

For example, as long as sexual activity is between consenting adults, you should be free to do whatever you like, with whomever you like, in whatever combinations you like, and in whatever circumstances you like in or out of marriage as long as no one is hurt by it. ‘Hurt’ is usually narrowly defined in terms of sexually transmitted diseases or pregnancy.

If human beings are nothing but highly evolved animals, as atheists claim, then it could be argued that no harm is done when people behave like animals. A hedonistic lifestyle may adequately provide for what you want out of life. Do whatever your desires and appetites and addictions and fetishes compel you to do.

If God exists, and he designed human sexuality to be expressed and find its meaning and fulfillment in the loving commitment of marriage, then unbridled sexual activity would be a destructive activity that attacks human dignity and eventually inflicts profound and lasting emotional, spiritual and physical wounds.

Everyone is hurt by the ‘do no harm’ ethic. Those involved in sexual promiscuity, or in other immoral activities that might be considered entirely private, are hurt because God made them for something so much higher and better. They degrade themselves when they fail to pursue their higher calling. Those who follow their example are hurt, especially the children who assume that this must be a good way to live. Parents who would never have wanted this for their sons or daughters are hurt. Even society itself is hurt as its moral tenor is diminished by such behavior even though its proponents claim they’re not hurting anyone else.

A problem for the naturalist who subscribes to the ‘do no harm’ ethical standard is that it is actually inconsistent with the naturalist worldview. Do naturalists see the ‘do no harm’ standard existing in nature? Is this something the natural world teaches us? Didn’t Darwin claim that, in nature, the strong prey upon the weak and only the fittest survive? Isn’t his how things should be in this strictly material world?

If human beings are merely highly evolved animals, why is it universally understood to be wrong for one human being to steal from, injure, or murder another human being? What is the rational basis to insert the notion of ‘right and wrong’ into an atheist worldview?

The consistent atheist is forced to admit that the ‘do no harm’ standard contradicts the naturalist worldview that embraces Darwin’s evolutionary principle of ‘survival of the fittest’. Natural selection is guaranteed not be being nice to competitors but by overpowering weaker competitors.

From “The Godless Delusion” by Patrick Madrid and Kenneth Hensley.

7 quick takes: The holiday edition.

7 things to do during the holidays.

-1-

Sew my Jacket.

-2-

A family day in Whyalla. We are going to go bowling and out for lunch.

-3-

Visit family and friends.

-4-

Sew some jeans for Tom and Christopher.

-5-

Sew Joseph some overalls.

-6-

Finish planning term 3's curriculum.

-7-

sleep in often.

As always, visit Jen at Conversion diary for other people's quick 7.

Small Successes

-1-

Took the children out for a walk today and went and visited the staff and children at Christopher's old kindy. This was huge for Christopher. He has been asking to go for a visit for a while now.

-2-

Got up early on Monday morning and went walking with friends.

-3-

Started planning term 3 literacy and maths program.

-4-

Have been to mass everyday this week except Wednesday. We couldn't go on Wednesday because Joseph had croup. Today he seems much better. He still has a nasty cough but is back to his happy cheerful self mostly.

-5-

Wrote up a list of things that I want to get done in the holidays.

Pop over to Sherry's Chocolate for your brain to read other people's small successes.

Some prayers.

Tom has recently memorised the act of contrition prayer. Up until this term, I haven't really spent much time teaching the children to memorise prayers. I can see that doing simple memory work with them has helped them in all areas of learning.

This is the act of contrition he has learnt.

O my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended you, and I detest all my sins, because of Your just punishments, but most of all because they offend You, my God, who are all-good and deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve, with the help of Your grace, to sin no more and to avoid the near occasion of sin.

Some other prayers I want them to learn are:

A morning offering:

O Jesus,
through the Immaculate Heart of Mary,
I offer You my prayers, works,
joys and sufferings
of this day for all the intentions
of Your Sacred Heart,
in union with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass
throughout the world,
in reparation for my sins,
for the intentions of all my relatives and friends,
and in particular
for the intentions of the Holy Father.

Amen.

Guardian Angel Prayer:

Angel of God, my guardian dear,

to whom God's love commits thee here,

forever this day be at my side,

to light and guard, to rule and guide.

Amen.

Tasty Tuesday: Chicken Vegetable soup

Since it is the middle of winter here, we are enjoying lots of soups. I made up a chicken vegetable soup last Sunday that was delicious.

Here is the recipe I used but I changed a few things around with the vegetables we already had. I also used a whole chicken rather than chicken legs and made my own stock with the chicken.

Ingredients.

1 tbspn oil.

2 leeks.

1 medium onion.

1 garlic clove.

3 carrots.

3 zucchini.

3 celery sticks

8 cups chicken stock.

1 whole chicken.

1.5 cups split peas or soup mix.

1 turnip diced.

Start making chicken stock by putting the chicken in water. Bring to the boil and then simmer for 3-4 hours, skimming often.

heat oil in frying pan and add onion, leeks and garlic. Cook until leeks and onions are transparent.

When stock is cooked, remove chicken from stock and take meat off bones.

place chicken, vegetables, split peas and stock into saucepan together. Bring to the boil then reduce heat and simmer for 1 hour. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with bread rolls.

Smart Martha Monday

Because of all the illness last week, I didn't do my morning routine or check all the children's jobs each day. I am really hoping that this week we can just have no illness or anything that throws my day into total chaos.

So my aim this week:

- do morning routine each day.

- check children's jobs each day and dish out consequences for not doing them.

- Plan our new literacy program for term two.

Joseph in the cupboard.

Joseph keeps climbing in our draws. I decided to take a photo to share.

Here is a video of him getting out.

Weekend wrap up

On Friday night, Sam had his year 12 formal. I took him down the street on Friday afternoon and bought him a suit. The shop keeper told me he will get married in this suit. Maybe one day. We will see. I may be a bit bias but I think he looks pretty good in this suit.

Amelia had no netball this weekend so Steve, Joseph and I went off to mass and adoration on Saturday morning. We stayed talking after mass with two Seminarians from Sydney that are visiting our parish. Steve and Michael are the Seminarians that are visiting. In the afternoon, Steve came over for lunch and he and Steve went through music for the new translation of the mass. Steve has been listening ever since to all the different sung parts of the mass.

On Saturday night, we jumped into our Volkswagon to go to Mass only to find that the battery was low. We decided to go to mass in the Carolla which meant we needed two trips to get everyone there.

Today Steve charged up the battery and the Volkswagon is running perfectly again.

This morning I took Tom, Amelia and Christopher to the Kids club service at the Uniting Church. Every Friday night they go to kids club and once a term they have a service which the children all take part in.

In the afternoon, we went to my friends Ellie's house for a Tupperware party. It was a fun afternoon and I cannot wait to get my tupperware.

This week is the last week of term so we are all looking forward to finishing off and having a holiday. I cannot believe we are half way through the year.

Some atheists will argue that there does not have to be an objective moral law rooted in and reflecting the character of God

They claim that we can figure out for ourselves how to make wise, good and ethical decisions. One suggestion would be to ask ourselves the simple question: what will bring the greatest happiness to the greatest number of people? What choice will result in the greatest total amount of happiness?

The major problem with this alternative ethical standard is that there is no way of measuring the greatest total amount of happiness. An atheist will define ‘happiness’ in terms of his naturalist worldview and the values that flow from it. A Christian will define happiness in terms of his theistic worldview and the values that flow from it. For example, an atheist might argue for smaller families on the grounds that each child will have better clothing and toys therefore more happiness. A Catholic might argue for a large family on the grounds that each child will have more love, more sharing and more memories, and therefore more happiness since happiness does not come from having lots of material possessions.

Our worldview determines our values and our ideas of where happiness is to be found. Happiness is not some measurable commodity that can be weighed objectively as a basis for making ethical decisions.

Another serious problem with the ‘happiness’ method of doing ethics is that once the happiness of the individual is subordinate to the happiness of the group, nearly anything can be justified. If what is important in moral reasoning is the ‘total amount of happiness’ then the happiness of the individual becomes secondary. The individual is no longer an end in himself but has become a means to the happiness of the group. Virtually any behavior can be justified on the grounds that it will result in the greatest amount of happiness for the greatest number of people.

Another problem for the naturalist who subscribes to the ‘happiness’ method of doing ethics is that it is actually inconsistent with the naturalist worldview. If there is no God as the naturalist asserts, no moral law and if humans are mere products of natural processes, accidents of chance and time; then why should we care about what results in the greatest total amount of happiness? Why should we choose to allow this arbitrary standard to bind us in our freedom? Why shouldn’t we do what we want? Why shouldn’t we pick our own arbitrary standard, such as “right will be whatever makes me happy”?

From “The Godless Delusion” by Patrick Madrid and Kenneth Hensley.

The front fell off.

A blast from the past. Yesterday, I was reading my blogs that I follow in google reader and Lola had a video explaining the Worlds financial collapse. It reminded me of this one that I have in my archives. The front fell off is one of my favourite videos. I hope you enjoy it too.